Below is a reminder regarding Deb Hubsmith’s Celebration of Life Party on Saturday October 10, at 6:00 PM at the Mill Valley Community Center, 180 Camino Alto, Mill Valley, California.

Please join us; this party is Deb’s gift back to the community which she loved so deeply. This event is for Deb’s family, friends, colleagues and her wider community. Feel free to share this with friends that are connected to Deb.

Event Details:
Together we will celebrate our beloved Deb’s life, which will include videos, slide shows, story sharing, songs, a live band (Valley Allstars) and DJ’d music (Hamid Martin) until midnight. Please come in comfortable casual/dance clothing and be ready to dance; Deb specifically asked that all of us dance at her Celebration of Life!

Food:
This will be an organic vegetarian potluck. Please bring your favorite dish (appetizers, main course, desserts, drinks, etc.). Please label your food with ingredients (indicate if it is vegan or gluten-free) and put your name on your dishes/serving utensils, etc. as there will be LOTS of potluck dishes and we want you to go home with your plates, etc. If you are coming in from out of town, there are two Whole Foods stores in Mill Valley where you can purchase organic vegetarian food or drinks for your potluck contribution.

Green Event:
This is a green event. To honor Deb’s love for this precious planet by reducing waste, please bring your own plate, utensils and drinking cup (if you cannot, don’t worry, we’ll have you covered); thank you for putting extra energy into stepping lightly on this Earth!

Also please carpool or ride your bike to the event; parking may be limited. Remember to have lights on your bike if you ride as Deb’s Celebration ends well after dark.

Deb Hubsmith
I'm blessed with a beautiful life, wonderful family and friends, and had an exciting career. But, in October 2013, I was suddenly stricken and diagnosed with acute myeloid leukemia (AML) following a two week illness not unlike a flu. My life changed immediately.

I was treated by Kaiser Permanente Hospital in San Rafael, California for months where I received multiple rounds of chemotherapy. This treatment did not knock out my AML and my only hope for a cure was to go to Stanford Hospital for a bone marrow transplant (BMT) in March of 2014.

The BMT was very intense and painful but I made it out of Stanford alive. I was doing great and growing stronger until November of 2014 when my blood counts again dropped. I am now being treated for a rare bone marrow condition called serous atrophy, which keeps stem cells from functioning/multiplying properly in my bone marrow. I lost a significant amount of weight and have intense fatigue, must avoid public places (due to infection risk), and as a result spend much of my time lying in bed.

I deeply want to live but desire to have a quality of life that includes dance, community, working for environmental/social causes, being able to enjoy time in nature and spend quality time with my beloved newlywed husband Andy Peri.

I am surviving on blood transfusions and am in a place of yearning to survive. I am also open to letting go of this life with grace should my options fade away. What carries me more than anything else is the dramatic, soul-enriching love of family and friends and my own love and acceptance of change and all that has come to pass.